Vegetable Spotlight – Cauliflower

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I decided to start a new recipe theme on the blog — it is called “vegetable spotlight.” Instead of presenting you with one recipe, now and then I am going to highlight a seasonal vegetable and show you a few different simple ways to cook it. While as a foodie, I love to come up with fancy recipes, I realize that some of you could use some simple inspiration of different ways to cook seasonal vegetables. First up: Cauliflower!

This vegetable often gets overlooked in favor of its more colorful cousins, like broccoli. Even though it is lacking in color, it is still a nutritious food – cauliflower contains vitamin K, B vitamins, as well as sulfur. Sometimes you can find colored cauliflower (I have seen green, purple, and orange!), which has higher levels of antioxidants and beta-carotene. What is amazing about cauliflower is its versatility – you can steam and mash it to replace potatoes, or process it until it forms “rice”. My absolute favorite use for cauliflower is to cook it with curry spices (avoiding the nightshades and seeds, of course!)

Mashed cauliflower and cauliflower rice are both an excellent addition to hearty protein dishes, like braised meats, steak, or roast poultry. I like to serve them with green vegetables for some color – maybe sautéed market greens like kale, chard, or collards, or a nice salad. Another option would be to serve them with a colorful dish like Rainbow Roasted Root Vegetables. Even though cauliflower is not the most colorful or exciting vegetable, I hope these simple recipes encourage you to include it in your weekly routine!

Here are three quick, simple ways to prepare cauliflower:

Steamed and Puréed Cauliflower

Take a head of cauliflower and steam for about 10-15 minutes, until soft. If you are steaming florets, this will take about half as long. Once your cauliflower is soft, purée in a blender with a tablespoon or two of fat of your choice (I like olive or coconut) and a generous pinch of sea salt. Super simple and amazingly delicious! You can even thin this further with bone broth, add some herbs like tarragon and thyme and turn into a creamy soup.

Curried Cauliflower

Heat some solid cooking fat in a wok or skillet and sauté cauliflower florets for about five minutes, or until they brown on the edges. Add some turmeric, ginger, sea salt, and a tablespoon of water, cover and let cook for another ten or so minutes, stirring occasionally. You can add some coconut aminos to the end to add some more flavor, but they taste fine without. Also, if you want to get really fancy, sauté up some onion, ginger and garlic before adding the cauliflower.

Cauliflower “Rice”

To make simple cauliflower rice, cut your head of cauliflower into florets and process in a food processor until they form “rice” size granules. Depending on your processor, this should only take a minimal amount of processing – you don’t want to end up with mush. Cook the “rice” in a hot wok or skillet with a tablespoon or two of solid cooking fat and sea salt, stirring occasionally. I like my “rice” not totally soft, so I only cook for 6-8 minutes, but you can cook as long as 10-12 minutes. If you want to jazz it up and make some fried rice, cook some onion, ginger, garlic, and mushrooms before you add the rice. Add some coconut aminos and you have a perfect Asian side-dish. Or, you can add some saffron and coconut milk for a thai variation.

What is your favorite way to cook cauliflower?

Mickey Trescott is a cook and one of the bloggers behind Autoimmune Wellness. After recovering from her own struggle with both Celiac and Hashimoto’s disease, adrenal fatigue, and multiple vitamin deficiencies, Mickey started to write about her experience to share with others and help them realize they are not alone in their struggles. She is a certified Nutritional Therapy Practitioner by the Nutritional Therapy Association, and is the author of The Autoimmune Paleo Cookbook, a guide and recipe book for the autoimmune protocol, and AIP Batch Cook, a video-based batch cooking program. You also can find her on Instagram.

28 comments

I make the cauliflower “faux-tatoes” but I add a yellow onion and fennel bulb to the pot with the cauliflower and steam them together. Then blend in the Vitamix with olive oil and pink salt. It’s my new comfort food! I will try the “rice” next. I’ve been intimidated by it, but you make it sound easy. Happy Thanksgiving! I’m thankful to have found your blog and all the kindness you share! 🙂

Hi Mikey I just would like your thoughts about cauliflower, broccoli, kale and there are a few more that you are advised not to be consummed if you have a hypo-thyroid you apparently can if you cook them but not to eat large amounts as these are what is seasonal during this winter do you have any advise on how often you can eat them and if you have had any problems with them with the hashimoto Thank you, love the wesite, have just had one of your soups for lunch very nice Linda

Buffalo Cauliflower definitely my fav! Not totally autoimmune-friendly with the chili powder and hot sauce, but I usually skip the hot sauce, and I can get away with a little bit of chili powder. YUM!!

* Pre heat oven to 425 Toss cauliflower with olive oil and distribute evenly. Combine garlic powder, paprika, chili powder, and salt in a small bowl. Toss spice mixture over cauliflower and mix well, making sure all the cauliflower is coated in the spices. Spread cauliflower out on a rimmed baking sheet a roast for 20 minutes. Toss with wing sauce and serve with your favorite blue cheese dressing for dipping. Enjoy! Makes about 2 cups..

“Creamy Dilled Cauliflower Soup”: My version was inspired by Donna Gates and her “Body Ecology Diet” book. Saute an onion in ghee (I use coconut oil, and sometimes I’ll mix the 2 for a different flavor), along with 4-6 cloves of chopped garlic. (It tastes just as delicious without the garlic). When translucent, add a head of cauliflower (cut into florets). Let cook for a few minutes, until soft. Add Celtic sea salt (I now hear that Himalayan has fluoride in it) and 2T dried Dill. Cover with water (I prefer using Organic Gluten-free chicken broth). Puree in blender, or simply use a hand blender and blend in the pot. My husband also loves this. It’s absolutely delicious, and very much a comfort food.

Another favorite of mine is Chef Shane Kelly’s version of Cauliflower Mashed Potatoes: http://www.chefshanekelly.com/2013/02/creamy-cauliflower-you-wont-miss-those-mashed-potatoes/ . (Cut and paste the link into your web browser because I don’t know how to create a web link here). I use Coconut Oil instead of butter, and I’ve found that I rarely add Coconut Milk, because it doesn’t need it. And mixing in some Organic Gluten Free Chicken Broth with the water gives it a good flavor (sometimes 1/2 broth and 1/2 water). My husband also loves these. I usually double all these recipes because we eat them up pretty quickly. :O)

[…] and coconut aminos. While the crispy sweet potatoes are fantastic, you could also serve them over cauliflower rice, zoodles (zucchini cut with a spiralizer and then sauteed breifly), or spaghetti squash. They make […]

Love your article and cauliflower recipes! I have a question about conventional cauliflower vs organic. It is very hard to find organic cauliflower in my area. How “dirty ” is the conventional and where does it stand on the “dirty dozen list ? ”

[…] rich. I recommend eating it as 4 small servings, with a vegetable on the side to fill out the meal. Cauliflower rice is a nice side dish. You can even serve the curry on top of the “rice”, if you […]

Thank you for this post. I riced my cauliflower. I sautéed up onions, carrots, and garlic and added the cauliflour, diced chicken, and shrimp and had the best fried ‘rice’ ever. 🙂 I used a bit of soy sauce (I am not off all condiments yet) and it was divine! I am still searching for coconut aminos near me. On Amazon people complain that half the product gets lost in shipping. 🙁

[…] And, one of the ways that you can do this is by embracing the mash! You’d be amazed at just how easy it is to play with herb and vegetable combos in your food processor. You can go sophisticated and zhushy – like with the HELLISHLY GOOD Herbed Parsnip and Celeriac Mash with Caramelised Onions, for example. Or, you can keep it simple – as with Steamed and Pureed Cauliflower. […]

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With five autoimmune diseases between them, Mickey and Angie found their path to better health with the Autoimmune Protocol. Now it’s their mission to share that approach with nourishing recipes, practical resources, and community connections.LEARN MORE>

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